Wrestlers aim for trophy
Hellmut Goebl The
Daily Illini |
| 197-pound senior Pat Quirk looks to pin junior
teammate Mike LeVanti on Nov. 3 at Huff Hall. |
Last season,
the Illinois wrestlers went 14-1 in dual meets and finished third
in the Big Ten.
They crowned four all-Americans and one national champion.
They placed sixth in the nation — the team's highest finish in 42
years.
Yet head coach Mark Johnson said his team can do better.
After missing the goal of top four in the country, Johnson believes
it will be this year's team that will bring home a trophy.
"I really think before you can try to challenge to win a national
championship, you have to be able to take a step and (top four) is
our next step," Johnson said. "At some point, I'm a little disappointed.
It's hard to be disappointed when you're sixth in the country and
have four (three returning) all-Americans — but we're capable of more."
This year, the Illini come in ranked fifth in InterMat's preseason
poll. They have three returning all-Americans — 149-pound senior Adam
Tirapelle, 197-pound Pat Quirk and heavyweight junior John Lockhart
— and eight returning NCAA qualifiers.
Eight of the 10 Illini starters are ranked by InterMat, including
Tirapelle and Lockhart, who both enter the season ranked No. 1 in
their respective weight classes. This is the first time in Illini
wrestling history that two wrestlers have received that ranking in
the beginning of the season.
Because six of the ten starters are graduating seniors, Tirapelle
said this season is that much more important.
"It's like the end of an era," Tirapelle said. "I feel like we need
to get a trophy to make our mark and show what we (the seniors) did
for the program. I would like to get (a trophy) to say — 'this is
my contribution to the University and the program.'"
For Tirapelle, this season also means redemption. After being crowned
Big Ten Champion in his weight class and getting to the final match
at the NCAA's, he lost in overtime, making him runner-up to the national
champion.
Tirapelle predicted he won't be alone at that championship match this
season.
"I think we have five or six guys this year whose goal really should
be to win (the National Championship)," Tirapelle said. "John (Lockhart),
Pat Quirk, (184-pound senior) Nate Patrick, I think even (165-pound
sophomore) Matt Lackey — who's young. I know he'll give his best performance
every time and won't get scared. Then we have other guys that can
be all-Americans."
The road to national competition will begin tonight at 7 p.m. in Edwardsville,
Ill. The grapplers will open their season for the third consecutive
year against Missouri. Last year, the Illini defeated the Tigers 27-12.
"It's a good opening match for us," Johnson said. "It's good to make
weight and have a match with somebody else before going into the Missouri
Open. It just gives us another competition under our belt before we
go to a really good tournament." |
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